The present invention relates to the field of communications, and more particularly to a system for measuring and displaying three-dimensional characteristics of electromagnetic waves.
Presently, an electromagnetic (EM) wave can be received by a dipole antenna and the resulting electrical signal representing the EM wave can be displayed using test equipment, such as an oscilloscope or a spectrum analyzer. The oscilloscope can provide a display of the amplitude of the received EM wave as a function oftime, while the spectrum analyzer can provide a display of the spectral content of the wave (i.e., amplitude of the wave as a function of frequency). However, it is possible to generate three-dimensional EM waves, for example, as described in the copending application. Moreover, using a single dipole (or other conventional antenna) and conventional test equipment to measure and display such a three-dimensional EM wave can result in a loss of EM wave information (e.g., a loss of spatial information) and/or provide an inaccurate display of the EM wave.
As a result, there is a need for equipment that more effectively measures and displays three-dimensional characteristics of EM waves.